The fact that rice can be in BOTH savory and sweet dishes came as a surprise to most of the students in cooking class last week. Most of the students were committed to their belief that rice is a side dish for dinner and only that. When I told them we were making rice pudding it was as if the two words were polar opposite magnets that could not stick together. “Pudding and rice??” The students are used to chocolate, vanilla, and butterscotch pudding. Some associated pudding to tapioca or bread pudding, but rice pudding? Unfathomable. To get over the hump of combining savory and sweet ingredients we discussed other ingredients that can be in both types of dishes. The students brainstormed raisins and nuts; I opened the conversation to mint and cocoa powder. They were coming around.
Seeing the rice paired with eggs, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon, and then watching the rice mixture turn into a batter made it more acceptable as a dessert. To my surprise, what also helped was how we cooked the rice pudding. Watching it turn from batter to a more solid dish made it more similar to other desserts. And finally, when we tasted the rice pudding the idea of rice in a sweet dish made complete sense. The “yummms” and clean plates confirmed that the students understood the versatility of rice.
Are you curious? Here’s how you can make your own:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup brown rice
- 3 ¼ cups water
- 1/3 cups raisins
- 4 eggs
- 2 ½ cup milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp cinnamon
Directions:
- Cook rice ahead of time. With a bit of extra water than usual, the rice should turn out slightly sweeter than normal.
- Put raisins in a bowl with warm water, set aside to plump up for a few minutes.
- Mix 4 eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon together
- Oil a medium pan and place on medium-low heat on burner
- Add egg mixture into warmed pan and cover. Keep on medium-low heat for about 25 minutes.
- Test ready-ness of pudding by sticking a knife in the center. If it comes out clean, it’s ready!
Class reflections compliments of Julia – Butter Beans cooking class teacher. Recipe, compliments of Butter Beans, Inc.
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Tags: after school cooking class, cooking with kids, rice pudding
